


Help Me I Am In Hell

by DabMyWetties



Series: halo fifteen [5]
Category: Pentatonix, Superfruit
Genre: Alternate Universe, Boys In Love, Coming Out, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Emotions, M/M, Oblivious Scott, Pride, Rally the Troops, Scott Needs A Hug, Series
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-13
Updated: 2017-07-13
Packaged: 2018-12-01 15:07:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,270
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11488926
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DabMyWetties/pseuds/DabMyWetties
Summary: Kevin pulls his hat and gloves off and plunks his briefcase on the floor before sitting down. “You’re here without Mitch on a Monday morning. None of that is normal. You’re supposed to be in class and Avi’s stuffing you with food like someone’s grandma. Something’s wrong,” he answers the presumptive question, propping his chin on his hand and looking at Scott expectantly.





	Help Me I Am In Hell

This is the second-riskiest thing he plans to do over the next seven days. 

It’s not even really risky, not in comparison to what’s to come. It’s just… Mitch doesn’t know he’s doing it, and Scott’s like 94% sure that it won’t be an issue but you never know these things. 

With a deep breath, Scott wraps his scarf more snugly around his neck and steps from the warmth of his car into the cold November air. He walks across the now-familiar parking lot and into Java House. 

Avi looks up from behind the counter as Scott walks through the door. Well, shit. That’s not who he expected to see. “Oh hey,” Avi rumbles in greeting, smiling as Scott heads up to the counter. “Almost didn’t recognize you by yourself and during the day. Shouldn’t you be in class?” 

Scott takes a quick glance around the shop and finds it empty. “Yeah, technically,” he says. “Actually I needed to talk to Kevin. Is he here, or…?” Avi shakes his head. “Not right now, nope. He’s taking care of some paperwork so I’m holdin’ down the fort for him. Everything alright?” 

It is, even though it’s not. Scott holds a brief internal debate before he answers. “Yes and no. Mitch’s parents kicked him out.” Avi’s jaw drops with a sharp intake of breath before Scott can finish speaking. “He’s okay, he’s okay,” he rushes to assure him. “I mean, he’s not  _ okay  _ but he’s safe. He’s staying with me, and he’s in class right now. I just wanted to get some advice from Kevin about the whole thing because he’s the smartest person I know, y’know?” 

“Shit, America,” Avi’s frowning intensely. No one quite knows why he calls everyone  _ America  _ but he does and Scott’s used to by now. “Okay, yeah, Kevin’s gonna want to help. He should be here…” he pauses to glance at his watch. “...in about twenty minutes. Let’s get you a warm drink. Latte, right? Did you eat yet? Want a muffin? College food sucks so you should eat something. Go on, have a seat” He starts towards the display case of pastries without giving Scott time to answer. 

He almost wants to laugh at Avi going into mom-mode. The guy’s a full time construction worker, a part time local rock star, and probably the gentlest softie in all of America - the actual America. He follows the older man’s directions and sits at a table near the counter while Avi quickly makes two cups of coffee and brings them over with a few pastries on a plate. 

It isn’t long before Avi has him distracted and laughing. “Ever hear the story about what your boy did to me at Blues Cafe over the summer?” he asks Scott. The blonde shakes his head, mouth too full of muffin to reply. Avi smiles and stretches his legs out, getting into prime storytelling mode. “So, no shit, there I was, crowd of about three hundred people. We were at the end of our cover set, had just finished  _ Peace Frog _ and started in on  _ Glycerine _ . I was singing my heart out, eyes closed, crowd was cheering, and at the end of the song I opened my eyes and saw something hanging off the end of my guitar. Mitch had gone to Walmart and bought the biggest bra they had, smuggled it into the show, then threw it at me on stage at the beginning of  _ Glycerine  _ which, of course, I did not notice because my eyes were closed. One of the straps caught on a tuning peg and so this sail-sized bra was fluttering away for the entire song which would explain why the crowd was more into a Bush cover than normal. I just thought I was killing it. The chicks did  _ not  _ dig that performance, suffice to say.”

Scott is still grinning at the mental image when Kevin walks through the door, his step faltering when he sees Scott. His brow creases slightly. “Okay, what happened?” Kevin asks, changing course to head for their table. 

“Wait, how…” Scott trails off. Kevin pulls his hat and gloves off and plunks his briefcase on the floor before sitting down. “You’re here without Mitch on a Monday morning. None of that is normal. You’re supposed to be in class and Avi’s stuffing you with food like someone’s grandma. Something’s wrong,” he answers the presumptive question, propping his chin on his hand and looking at Scott expectantly. 

It’s a fair assessment. “Yeah,” Scott replies slowly, the humor from Avi’s storytelling now a memory. “He’s safe, so don’t freak out, but Mitch’s parents found out about, y’know, him. They kicked him out of the house.” Kevin’s expression doesn’t change save for his eyes closing for a few heartbeats, then they open and he looks skyward, mouth forming silent words. He prays a lot and this seems as good a time as any for it. “He’s… I’m...” Scott feels helpless suddenly. He’s held it together the last few days, done his best to be a good adult and trying to make adult plans and decisions, but this is all very difficult. “I wanted to see if you had any advice, or thoughts, or something. I have no idea what I’m doing. I’m scared.” 

“Alright,” Kevin says after a moment. “Where is he now? Is he staying with someone?” 

Scott nods. “He’s in class right now. He called me after it happened. I’ve got him staying with me, hopefully until the semester is over.” 

“Risky,” Kevin says. “And probably really cramped. Why didn’t he call me? His mini apartment isn’t quite ready yet but we have a guest room. He doesn’t have to crash in a dorm if he doesn’t want to, though I’m sure he prefers your company.” 

That brings a bit of a smile to Scott’s face. “Probably. But he’s kind of a mess. He’s hurt and sad and really, really stubborn. He keeps going on about not being able to afford to rent a room from anyone on his current paycheck, and how he’s not a freeloader. I got him to agree to stay with me so he could keep his 4.0 and get that job here, and then he can afford rent.” 

Kevin’s previously calm expression wavers. “Rent,” he mutters, rubbing at his forehead. “He’s worried about rent right now. And his GPA. Goodness, that kid is stubborn, but we knew that already. Okay. What if you guys get caught and he can’t stay in your dorm?” 

See, this is the part of his adult plans that he’s worried about. “If that happens then I’ll work extra hours and we’ll rent a crummy little apartment so we can both finish school,” Scott says hesitantly. 

He hears Avi’s quiet exhale and Kevin closes his eyes again briefly before speaking. “You’re thinking of your education. That’s amazing. That’s good. That’s… you’re planning ahead and thinking of different outcomes. Good. But, listen, nobody needs to work extra hours or live in some rat-infested hovel. The job is his, so is the mini apartment once Avi finishes the renos - especially now.” 

Relief floods through Scott; he physically slumps with it. “I just…” he exhales. “I’d do whatever it takes to keep him safe, y’know? I could make it work if we had to. I won’t let him be homeless, on the streets…” 

Kevin’s eyes are so, so soft. “You  _ could  _ make it work. I know you could make it work, and you’re not the only one who wouldn’t let him be homeless. Lord, you are such a good kid, but you don’t have to take this all on yourself. Neither does he.” 

Scott doesn’t know what to say, but Kevin doesn’t give him much time to come up with anything. “Here’s what I’m thinking,” the older man begins. 

\--

It’s later than Scott meant it to be when he pulls into the dorm’s parking lot. Mitch is already there; Scott sees his car in a visitor spot and as he approaches it he can see Mitch sitting in the driver’s seat, head bopping to the music that must be playing inside. He’d like to sneak up and tap on the window to scare him but his hands are full. He settles for pressing his face against the driver’s side window until Mitch notices him and screams. 

Scott’s more than a little surprised that he doesn’t drop anything considering the laughing fit and all. 

“You asshole,” Mitch laughs as he gets out of the car and takes the paper bag from Scott’s hand. He does a double take at the Java House cups he’s still holding. “What’s all this?” 

“Lunch, courtesy of Avi” Scott replies, tilting his head towards the building. “Let’s go inside.” 

Mitch is giving him a  _ look  _ as he unpacks two sandwiches and two jam danishes onto his desk. “So I went to get some advice from Kevin this morning,” Scott says. “I wanted to make sure I was figuring everything out and making plans the right way.” 

“You skipped class,” Mitch says. It’s not a question, more of an accusation. Scott nods and grimaces a little. “I did. In my defense, it was a review for the test and I know the material. I promise. I just… I’m not real experienced in doing adult stuff, and I don’t exactly have many people I can ask about how to handle situations like this. I don’t want to screw anything up.” 

Mitch takes the sandwich Scott pushes at him. “So, then, Kevin and I guess Avi know what’s going on.” Once again, it’s not a question. At least it’s not accusatory this time. “What’d they say?” 

“I only told them the basic details, and only because you said you wanted to tell them but didn’t know how,” Scott says around a bite of his sandwich. “Their guest room is yours if you ever need it. You start your new job in two weeks so go ahead and tell Brenda and her nazi call center to fuck off.” 

Mitch pauses mid-chew. “What?” he says after he manages to swallow. “But the semester’s not over. I didn’t….” 

When he trails off and doesn’t pick back up, Scott explains. “Kev said that you cramming yourself into my dorm room and still being determined to finish school in spite of everything going on is more telling than any number of semesters on the Dean’s List. Your part of the deal is done in his mind.” 

A tendril of hair has worked loose of Mitch’s ponytail and as he just stares, openmouthed, Scott has the urge to reach over and tuck it behind his ear. He does, because he can, and Mitch finally blinks back to reality. “But… it’s…” he stammers. Scott smiles a little. “Avi’s still doing the construction work stuff on the apartment so that’s still on the regular timeline, but if we get quote-unquote ‘caught,’ or if you just need more space, you should be making enough to rent their guest room. There’s no ramen in our immediate future. Okay?” 

Mitch nods slowly and Scott finishes the last bite of his sandwich. “There’s just one more thing I need to do,” he says. 

\--

“Sweetheart. Are you…  _ depressed  _ again?”

It isn’t lost on Scott how much this seems straight out of a movie. He’s sitting in his parents’ living room - mom and dad on the couch with concerned expressions, him across from them in a chair he’d pulled in from the dining room, knee bouncing nervously and heart racing. The only thing that would have made it more perfect would have been if his mom had asked if he’d gotten someone pregnant. 

Hey, she’ll never have to worry about  _ that  _ after today.

“No, mom. No. I’m...good. I’m pretty sure I’m the happiest I’ve ever been, actually.” Scott fiddles with the folder in his lap, creasing and straightening the corner of it over and over. 

“Son, you can tell us anything,” his dad says. “We’ll do our best to help…” 

_ I sure hope so… _

Scott takes a deep breath, focuses on the folder, and before he loses his nerve blurts it out. “I’m… I’m gay.” 

He’s too afraid to look back up into the silence. 

 

_ “I want to come with you. What if it doesn’t go well? What if you need support?” Mitch was frowning slightly. His sandwich was still mostly uneaten and Scott wanted to remind him to eat it but didn’t want to be pushy.  _

_ Instead he reached out and took Mitch’s hand. “If it doesn’t go well then I don’t want you there for it, not after what you just went through. That’s just cruel. I think I’d be too worried about you to actually go through with it.”  _

_ “Baby,” Mitch murmured with a pained expression. “You were there for me when I needed you. What if… what if you need me?”  _

_ “I’ll be an hour away and if it goes badly then I’ll get to my safe space,” he squeezed Mitch’s hand with a smile. “I need to do this, and I’ll feel so much better if I know you’re safe at Kevin & Avi’s while I do it.”  _

_ “Why now? Why all the sudden?”  _

_ “Well, number one because Thanksgiving is in a couple weeks and winter break not long after that. I’m not leaving you alone for the holidays, so either you come home with me or I stay here with you. Not sure how I would explain any of that to my parents without them asking too many questions that would probably out me anyways.” Mitch was shaking his head, probably about to object, but Scott gave his hand another squeeze. “Second, because I need to. I’m ready and it’s time. I need to know where things stand.”  _

 

Scott’s brought back to the present by a hand on his shoulder. His mom. He looks up hesitantly; she has a few tears running down her face. “I’m sorry,” he whispers and his mom makes this odd strangled sound in her throat, and then his dad is getting up from the couch and coming over to him. “Don’t be sorry, no, honey,” she says. “Don’t…” Then his dad’s there with a hand on his other shoulder. No one’s yelling or screaming so that’s good but this crying thing worries him. 

His mom takes a deep breath. “Don’t be sorry. I just… this is kind of a shock and I don’t want to say anything… wrong or insensitive. Please just give me a minute, okay?” 

Scott nods and waits quietly, his parents still on either side of him with their hands on his shoulders. It’s weird and not entirely comfortable. He’s actually about to open his mouth and ask if he should go into another room or leave for a little while to give them some privacy. “Can I ask,” his mom begins suddenly. “Is this… does this have anything to do with, um, last year? When you withdrew from school?” 

“Yeah,” he admits, voice quiet. “I wasn’t exactly handling things so great. I go to a, well, kind of like a support group now. Made some new friends. So I’m doing really well.” 

His dad speaks for the first time. “Scotty, I wish we could have helped you more then. I wish you’d talked to us.” 

“Now, Rick,” his mom cuts him off. “No, they… I’m sorry, let me phrase this better - Scott came to us when he felt ready. He wasn’t ready a year ago.” 

“I wasn’t,” Scott agrees. This is still weird. “I just… I was such a mess, and I didn’t think you guys would take it very well, and…” He trails off, unsure of what more to say. “I, um, I brought you guys some information. Some pamphlets.” He holds up the folder from where he’s been clutching it tightly in his lap. “For P-FLAG. They’re kind of like a support group, for parents. I mean, if you want the information…” 

His mom takes the folder from him and sets it aside. “We’ll read it all this evening. Why did you think we wouldn’t take it well, sweetheart? Yeah, it’s kind of a shock and it’s a lot to process, but with your Uncle Greg and all, I’m surprised you were worried about us reacting badly.” 

“What about Uncle Greg?” Scott looks at his mom, perplexed. 

“Honey, Greg is gay. I thought you knew.” 

“Wait, Greg as in your brother Greg? As in Greg and Roy …oh.”

He blinks. “Oh.” 

He blinks some more. “ _OH_!” Scott sits there stunned as the pieces fall into place. “I thought they were business partners, not…” 

His parents both laugh - softly, and not cruelly, but they laugh, and the tension is suddenly gone. “Yeah, they’re business partners with their roofing business but, honey, they’ve been together as a couple for over twenty years now. Does anyone else in the family bring their co-worker to holiday meals for two decades?” 

In retrospect it’s obvious. Scott can’t even be a little irritated at his cluelessness, though, because  _ seriously _ . Seriously how the fuck did he not realize this? He can only laugh, and the more he thinks about it the more he laughs until he has to wipe a few tears away. 

Once the laughter dies down, his dad speaks again. “If this is none of our business or the wrong thing to ask just say so, but are you… seeing anyone?” 

Scott takes a deep breath. “I am. And that’s kinda part of the reason I’m here today,” he says. 

Scott tells the whole story - minus the part about Mitch living in his dorm with him because this whole thing went well but not  _ that  _ well - even though he’d at first intended only to give them a rundown. They ask a few questions here and there, and soon enough he’s told them exactly what was said when Mitch had been kicked out and Scott’s mom is  _ crying  _ over it, over this boy she’s never met. 

“Bring him for Thanksgiving,” she sniffles. “Christmas, too. He needs to be surrounded by love.” 

This is a sentiment Scott fully agrees with. 

“Speaking of,” he says. “Can I… can I have a few minutes? I need to call him, let him know I’m okay. I know he’s worried.” His mom shoos him upstairs and Scott settles onto his bed in his old room and pulls the scrap of paper with Kevin and Avi’s number out of his wallet. 

The phone doesn’t ring a full ring before Mitch answers breathlessly. “Baby? How are you?” 

Scott grins. “How did you know it was me and why did you answer so fucking fast?” 

There’s a brief pause. “Caller ID. And I’ve had the cordless phone next to me since I got here. So?” 

“Well, I found out my uncle is gay. I apparently had the world’s longest blonde moment and never figured out his business partner is not just his business partner.” 

Mitch’s voice is quiet. “So...it went okay? You’re okay?” 

“I’m okay,” Scott assures him. “It was… emotional. But okay. My mom wants you to come for Thanksgiving and Christmas.” 

Mitch exhales so forcefully that the phone goes a little staticky. “Thank god,” he breathes. “I was so scared.” 

“Babe,” Scott murmurs. “I know. I was too, but it’s over now. I’m going to have dinner with my parents and head back afterwards. I miss you so much already.” 

“You’ve been gone less than three hours,” Mitch says, a smile in his voice. “I love you.” 

“I need cuddles. I love you too, and I’ll see you in a few hours.” 

 

**Author's Note:**

> If you follow Tyler Oakley you probably saw his video series on “chosen families” for Pride 2017. Chosen families are not a new concept, and while they’re not exclusive to the LGBTQ+ community they are vital to it. This was true twenty years ago, and even fifty years ago and more. It is still true today.
> 
> A chosen family is a group of people who you consider family though they’re not related by blood or marriage. In the case of LGBTQ+ youth - and even adults - often blood ties are strained or broken as a result of one’s sexuality or gender expression, leaving people without the support network a family might otherwise provide. This support network might range from people who properly gender an individual or recognize their non-heterosexual partner(s), to those willing to lend an emotional or financial hand in times of crisis, or to something as simple as a warm environment to enjoy a holiday meal. 
> 
> In this chapter we see some members of a chosen family rallying in a time of crisis as well as the genesis of a new chosen family - Scott’s - for Mitch.


End file.
